There is a notable connection between Canadian census metropolitan area (CMA) population and public transit ridership, as a percent of the commuting population. Smaller CMAs have lower ridership rates. Certain characteristics of smaller CMAs make commuting by car more attractive. Smaller CMAs tend to have lower downtown parking rates. They also enjoy less traffic congestion compared to larger CMAs. On the other hand, larger CMAs, such as Toronto and Winnipeg, have been burdened with serious issues of safety in public transit stations and vehicles. Combining secondary data with a selection of small CMA cases, this paper explores determinants of transit ridership, leading to public policy recommendations for increasing transit ridership. The determinants of transit use can be classified into controllable and uncontrollable factors. While weather patterns and population growth are relatively uncontrollable, transit authorities can control a variety of service features, such as number of routes, number of stops and frequency of service. Drawing on archival data and interviews with CMA transit authorities, cases will contrast several small CMAs across Canada, in an attempt to better understand various drivers of ridership performance, ranging (in 2021) from 1.2 percent in Drummondville, Quebec to 4.9 percent in Kingston, Ontario.
